


Tribulation

by friesecondsofsummer



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band), Halsey (Musician), One Direction (Band), Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Action, Adventure, Alternate Universe - Dark, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Dark, M/M, idk - Freeform, ill put more later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-13
Updated: 2016-04-12
Packaged: 2018-05-06 10:54:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5414186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/friesecondsofsummer/pseuds/friesecondsofsummer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>trib·u·la·tion</p><p>/ˌtribyəˈlāSH(ə)n/</p><p>noun</p><p>noun: tribulation; plural noun: tribulations</p><p>a cause of great trouble or suffering</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Apparently I cant stop thinking of new story ideas. So here you have it. This is loosly based off of the Walking Dead just as an FWI.  
> It'll be pretty graphic and gory with lots of swearing. 
> 
> I have no idea when I will be starting this story as I'm going to be in Dubai for 2 weeks for Christmas and won't be back until January.  
> There most likely won't be a set schedule for this and it'll be more of a "I'll update it when I feel like it." type of thing.
> 
> Anyways, hopefully you'll like it! 
> 
> ily  
> xx  
> Em

 

 

_“Monsters are real, ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.”_

_— Stephen King_

 

 

 _ Prologue_

The raspy groans that emitted from the corpses behind me, pushed me to pick up my pace. Shaking my hair out of my face, my view ahead became clear. That was when my heart stopped, as I saw no way to get out of this alive. Ahead of me was an even larger group of the flesh-eating monsters. They had clearly been alerted by all the noise the pack behind me was making and were headed straight for me. My plan B was gone. The desperate moans from behind me were getting louder, as the ones from in front of me were getting closer. I urgently swung my head to the left and right, without breaking my pace. The walls were to tall and there was no possible way I could climb them. In other words, I was fucked. Panic flared through my body as I tried to think of a rational decision within 10 seconds. 10 seconds was all I had. Seeing as I was getting closer to the hoard of rotting flesh-eaters, I skidded to a halt and took in my surroundings with a feeling of dread.

 

_10..._

There was a ladder but judging by the distance, it was to far away to make it to safety.

 

_9..._

I had about 15 bullets left in my revolver.

 

_8..._

There must be some way to get away.

 

_7..._

Maybe I could reach the railing to that building and pull myself to safety.

 

_6..._

 

I promised him I would come back. 

 

_5..._

I have to move now. 

 

_4..._

I'm to late.

 

_3..._

So this is how it ends.

 

_2..._

I'm sorry...

 

_1..._

I love you.

 

A corpse lunged at me and I grunted as it knocked me down. It was missing an eye and half of its face was ripped away, the flesh that had once been there was now replaced by maggots.

Taking out the revolver, I shot right through its remaining eye, grimacing as blood showered down on me. However that one was replaced by three more.

Just as they reached me, my walkie-talkie went off.

 

_"Hey, you're taking a really long time. Are you alright? I'm really worried. Please respond to this, the others are all back excluding you. You promised me..."_

 

Guilt flowed through me as I pressed the button to respond.

"I'm so sorry." I whispered, just as the mob closed in on me.

 

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Day 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty so i just got back from vacation and I thought I'd start this. I really like this idea and I'm very excited to write more! So this chapter is very Ashton centric with no Luke but I promise we're getting to that soon! If anyone wants to be in this story just let me know and I'll add you! Thanks so much and enjoy! 
> 
> WARNINGS 
> 
> -GRAPHIC SCENES  
> -LANGUAGE   
> -VIOLENCE

_**Cause this is not enough** _   
_**And I won't wait for them to cut me up** _   
_**So give me all you've got** _   
_**They'll never stop until they see us fall** _   
_**So let's run** _   
_**So let's run** _

  
**Run** //Bring Me the Horizon

Do you ever have those moments where you question what exactly you're doing with your life? Maybe your mind takes you back to that unbelievably stupid choice you made in high school or maybe it brings you to the what if game. What if I had just listened to my parents? What if I had tried harder? What if? Currently these thoughts were milling around in my brain as I watched the sunrise. I was sat on my queen sized bed, hands folded behind my head as I leaned against the headboard. It was to early to be awake but at the same time to late to be asleep. For me anyways. My eyes stared lifelessly at the explosion of orange and yellow hues emitted by the sky. It was just another typical morning for me. Contemplating how I ended up here while ignoring the beauty all around me. Typical me.  
A soft groan beside me temporarily paused my mess of jumbled thoughts and snapped my head to the source of the noise.  
Blue eyes met hazel and I blinked.

"What are you doing up at this ungodly hour?"

I shrugged and removed my hands from their position, instead lacing them together in my lap. "The real question is why aren't _you_?"

"Well I am now dumbass."

With that being said, my girlfriend rolled over so she was facing away from me and cuddled deeper into the duvet.

"Someone's grumpy this morning." I observed and shifted my position so I was laying down, staring at the ceiling.

"I'm hungover dipshit leave me alone and let me sleep." She muttered, her voice slightly muffled by the blankets she was engulfed in.

I chuckled as memories of last night flooded into my brain. I guess she was learning today that alcohol did have its downsides.

Being the good boyfriend I am, I rolled out of bed and pulled open a drawer, grabbing the aspirin bottle. "Here." I tossed the bottle at her sleeping shape and she groaned once more. "I'll go get you some water."

My ears were met with the quiet murmur of a conversation as I entered the kitchen and I frowned. However my confusion was cleared when I saw that Jasmine had left the TV on. I rolled my eyes when seeing the local news station channel. I fucking hated watching the news. It was so depressing hearing about how shitty the world was. There was literally no good news on. I mean the world would be so much better if they would focus on I don't know lets say puppies and kittens. Jasmine always argued with me and firmly believed that it was better to know what was going on with the world. Currently a blonde woman was urgently speaking in an alarmed tone, brown eyes wide.

"There has been an outbreak of sickness and-"

Rolling my eyes once more, I turned it off. Like I said, fucking depressing.

I quickly grabbed a glass and filled it with water before returning to my girlfriend. Jasmine and I may have had our differences, but I was so in love with her it didn't make a difference. We had been together a little over 2 years and honestly they had been the best 2 years of my life. I couldn't imagine life without her. With that in mind, I crouched by her and handed her the water. She smiled and gratefully took it, popping some pills in her mouth and chasing it with the liquid.

"Thanks Ash." She smiled and kissed my cheek.

Instead of replying, I grabbed my remote and pressed play. The sound of Sum 41 flooded the room and I smirked, knowing Jas hated them. Honestly I had no idea why or even how that was possible but oh well,  
It was my apartment. I turned around to see Jas covering her ears with a mock look of pain in her eyes. I snickered and stretched my arms over my head. Jasmine's face went slack as her eyes traveled up my body, her annoyance obviously forgotten. I smirked and opened my closet, pulling out a simple grey v-neck tee shirt.

"What do you want to do today babe?" I questioned as I slipped my arms through the shirt. She yawned and cracked her neck. My eyes wandered over her beautiful dark skin as she proceeded to crack her knuckles.

"Whatever you want to do is fine with me." The petite girl stepped out of bed and smiled as she began to saunter towards me. I found myself getting lost in the ocean of her eyes. She was honestly one of the most beautiful human beings I had ever met. She took after her mother in the aspect of her crystal eyes and petite features and her dad in her caramel complexion.   
I leaned down to match her height and connected our lips. She hummed in response and wrapped her arms around my neck. Before it could get farther, a knock sounded at the door.   
I groaned and hesitantly pulled away.

"Fucking cock-block."

Jasmine giggled and turned away. Considering she was only wearing one of my band tees, I assumed I was supposed to answer the door. The knocking didn't stop and I sighed.

"One minute!" I called towards the door. God this person didn't have patience. As I rounded the corner to the entrance, I frowned. It didn't sound like knocking anymore, more like thumping around and I sighed. Someone was probably just drunk. Then again it was only 7 in the morning so that was pretty unlikely. The banging around was fading as though the person was walking down the hall regardless, I opened the door anyway and peeked my head out in curiosity.

A figure was slumped against the wall as it stumbled down the hall and I recognized the person to be one of my neighbours, Matt. I never really talked to the kid except for passing one another in the hall and the occasional favour. However I didn't take him for a day drinker.

"Hey Matt, you okay man?" I called. He would probably need assistance to get back into his apartment, so being the nice person I am, I started towards him. My voice seemed to grab his attention, as he immediately stopped what he was doing. As I got closer to him, I wrinkled my nose because man this guy smelled rank. Like has he never heard of a shower? Pushing the thought away, I stretched a hand out and put it on his shoulder.

"Here let me help-"

Except I never got to finish my sentence before Matt turned around, making strange snarling noises. I gasped because holy shit was this a joke? The boys skin was ghostly pale, red veins surrounded his cloudy blue eyes that had once been a vibrant green and his mouth was ajar, blood dripping from his teeth. Matt lurched towards me and I screamed. What kind of sick joke is this? His body collided with mine as he pushed me to the carpeted floor. I screamed once more as he snapped his jaws at my face.

"What the fuck? What's wrong with you?" I hollered, desperately trying to push the thing away from me. The weight suddenly vanished and I looked up to see Jasmine with a horrified look on her face. We made eye contact and she looked relieved to see I was okay. This relief was immediately contorted into pain and I stood up in a flash to see Matt biting down on her ankle. She yelped and kicked him in the face before she took off running back to my apartment, yelling for me to follow her. She didn't need to tell me twice. Hearing the moans from behind me, I knew Matt or whatever the fuck that thing is, following not far behind me. Before he could catch me, I slammed the door shut and locked it, breathing heavily. My heart was pounding in my  
chest as I looked up to see my girlfriend fumbling with the remote. I closed the distance between us and for once didn't complain when she turned on the news.

"Has taken over the globe!"

It was the same blonde woman as before. She was standing in the street, gunfire evident in the background.

"If you're just tuning in, there has been an outbreak of sickness all around the world! People everywhere have been infected and-"

She was interrupted by the cameraman screaming a warning at her, too late. A figure stumbled onto the screen and lunged into the woman's neck. She screamed in agony as her body went limp. The screen became blurry and it became evident the cameraman had bolted. The tv was focused instead on the woman, wound bleeding as her eyes stared pleadingly into the camera. A feeling of dread pitted into my stomach as I realized something was seriously wrong.

"What do we do?" I whispered, shaken to the core.

Jasmine blinked as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Let's just stay here until this whole thing blows over."

I nodded and looked at her ankle. The bite looked nasty. It was already swelling and it was all red and infected. "We should clean that." I stated. The blue-eyed girl looked down as if she had forgotten it was there.

"Yeah it's starting to throb now." She admitted and made grabby hands at me. I allowed a small smile to grace my features as I picked her up bridle style, carefully avoiding contact with her bad foot. Once we were in the bathroom, I pulled my first aid kid out from under the sink and instructed her to sit on the toilet.   
After putting on a disinfectant and slathering the bite in polysporin, I wrapped her foot up with cloth and kissed it.

"All better." I reassured her. She smiled in return.

"Would you mind if I went back to bed? I'm a little tired." She asked, almost like a child asking for a toy. I laughed. "Of course not love, have a good sleep." She nodded and rubbed her eyes. "I will, love you Ash." A warm feeling spread through me and I smiled. "Love you too Jas."

Within about an hour of Jas falling asleep, I felt myself beginning to doze off. However, worry for my girlfriend was keeping me awake. Matt had been infected and he bit her. Does this mean she would be infected too? Worry spread through me like a wildfire. The sound of groaning interrupted my thoughts. I sat up in alarm. The noise almost sounded like it was coming from the bedroom.

"Jas?"  
I questioned, frowning in concern. The moaning only got louder and yeah it was definitely coming from the bedroom. I sprang to my feet and raced to the door.   
"Jas! Talk to me baby, what's wrong!" I was frantic, scared that somehow one of those monsters had gotten into my room. I yanked the door open my eyes wide with panic. Jasmine was staring at me, except it wasn't Jasmine at all. She in a way looked like Matt had. Her skin paler then before, not white, but nonetheless paler. She had the same red veins around her eye sockets and god her beautiful eyes...the ones I adored so much were clouded over, emotionless.

"Jas?" I whispered almost inaudibly.

She snarled in response and limped towards me. I glanced at her foot and saw she was walking on it in a weird fashion. It hit me just then. Holy shit she was infected and she was no longer Jas. Before I could stop them, tears rolled down my cheeks.

"Jas." I spoke louder. This couldn't be happening. God wouldn't be so cruel. Surely this was all just a bad dream. I squeezed my eyes shut and pinched myself. Nothing. It was silent excluding the desperate snarls coming from the girl I loved. What was I supposed to do now? I opened my eyes and saw her getting closer. I glanced at the bathroom and quickly took action. Grabbing my girlfriends shoulders, I wrestled with her, carefully avoiding her snapping jaws. With all the strength I could muster, I shoved her into the bathroom and closed the door. Eyeing my dresser, I pushed it in front of the door, just in case she figured out how to open the door.

I stared at nothing in particular and tried to push the faint sounds of Jasmine's animalistic growls out of mind. I was utterly lost. I had to find a cure for her. With that thought, I opened my closet and pulled out my backpack. I threw various clothing garments inside and raced to the kitchen and grabbed a few food items. Lastly, I returned back to my room and lifted up my mattress, retrieving the gun I had stored there. I slipped the weapon into the waistband of my jeans and sighed before heading to the bathroom door.

"I'll be back baby, I promise. I love you so much. I'm going to fix you." The disgusting noises continued and I felt tears prickle at my eyes. "Goodbye for now love." I finished, my voice breaking towards the end. I quickly turned away and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. I had to be strong. For her. The thought provoked determination to settle in my brain and I shook my head to clear my negative thoughts. Rushing to the kitchen, I pulled out every sharp knife I owned and placed them inside my backpack, saving one to hold. Taking a breath, I slowly approached the door and opened it. I had a gut feeling Matt would still be there. My gut proved to be right when I heard a string of grunts and laboured breathing down the hall. I turned around the corner and made eye contact with the monster. He growled and started towards me. I urged my feet to move but it seemed I was frozen on the spot. Jasmine isn't here to save you now. I thought. This seemed to wake up my body as I lunged forward to meet the thing and wow this was a lot harder then I thought.

"Fuck!" I spat as Matt pushed me up against the wall, blood pouring from his mouth and landing on my shirt. I grimaced but managed to throw him off. Seeing my opportunity, I gripped my knife harder and proceeded to drive it into his skull. Instantly the corpse went limp and the noises stopped. My breathing was heavy as I started to process what I had just done.

"Fuck!" I hollered, punching the wall. I killed an innocent boy. I was a murderer. I slowly slid down the wall and for once, I allowed myself to cry. After a few minutes, I slowly picked myself up and shook my sore hand. It was definitely going to bruise. Seeing Matt's dead body made me cringe but thoughts of Jas were still dancing in my head. With that in mind, I walked back to my apartment and pulled out the key, locking the door. I couldn't risk someone coming in and seeing her. With the weight of the world on my shoulders and determination to save the girl I loved, I began my impossible journey.

 


	3. Day 73

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wow it's been a while! Honestly school is so time consuming so I'm very sorry for not updating until now! Anyways enjoy! xx

Silence.  
That was a sound I had become accustomed to. It was a terrible noise. And I know what you're thinking. How can silence be a noise if there's no sound? It wasn't the sounds around me that I was afraid of, but the ones in my head. I would much rather listen to the sounds of normal city life then this deafening silence. Ever since I had stepped foot outside of my apartment, that's all I could hear. It was as though time had slowed down right before my eyes. I shook my head to pull me out of these thoughts and instead tuned my focus to the task ahead of me. My latest car had broken down a few miles back and I needed to find a new one. Currently I was standing in the middle of a deserted road where cars were carelessly parked, some of the doors were even still open. I approached the first car I saw, a dusty old mini van that was probably previously owned by some soccer mom. I smirked seeing the keys still in the ignition. Looks like it was my lucky day. Cautiously, I checked the car for any of the monsters and sighed in relief when I came up empty handed. I quickly threw my backpack into the passenger seat and closed the door. Now I just needed to make a stop to get some supplies. I started up the car and began to drive down the road. 

After a couple hours of driving, I approached a small grocery store. The window had been smashed in and cans littered the floor, signifying someone had been here before me. Of course that was to be expected. I slipped out of the van and cautiously locked it. I had learned the hard way that even in these days, people were still thieves. It didn't take long for me to scavenge and find a few undamaged cans of food and I started to make my way out. A scream followed by gunfire broke out into the air and I froze. It had been a few weeks since I had had human contact and I found myself unsure of what to do. It was hard to trust people these days. I unlocked the car and chucked the cans into the car before once more locking it and taking off in the direction of the noise. It was a nice change from the silence. 

"We're fucked!" A voice screeched as I neared closer. I pulled my revolver from the waistband of my jeans as a small group of people came into view. One of the corpses had pinned a boy to the ground as he struggled in vain. Without hesitation, I aimed and fired off my gun. Instantly the flesh eater dropped on top of the stranger. He made a choking noise of surprise as he struggled to remove the body from his.He seemed to realize that the monster hadn't died on its on in that moment and looked directly at me, fear evident in his chocolate eyes. I nodded to him briefly before turning my attention back to the battle. I managed to take down 6 more before I noticed more corpses on the way. 

"Come on!" I hollered, motioning frantically towards the direction of the van. The group took the hint and sped off after me. I pulled the keys from my pocket and unlocked the car before diving into the drivers seat. I glanced over my shoulder to see the mass of people cramming into the seats. From the growing sound of groaning I knew we were limited on time. 

"Close the fucking door dammit!" I ordered impatiently. This seemed to get them moving as they picked up their pace and eventually I heard the door slam. Immediately I slammed on the pedals to get the hell out of here. Once it was evident that we were in the clear I made an abrupt turn out of the way of the road and stopped the car. 

"Everyone out." I demanded in a steely tone. I opened my door and stepped out, crossing my arms over my chest. Eventually all of them had managed to pile out from the tangle of limbs they had previously been and I counted 6 people in total. 

"Thanks for saving my ass back there." My eyes landed on a tall dark skinned boy. The same one that had been pinned down. I let my gaze travel up his body to see tattoos litter his dirt and blood caked skin. I shrugged and muttered how he should be more careful. Honestly I was conflicted. My gut was telling me to leave these people here in the middle of nowhere but, my heart was telling me to help them. 

"Do you have a camp?" I questioned, scratching the back of my neck. This time it was a girl with a buzz cut that answered my question. 

"Yeah it's a hour drive from here." 

I nodded absentmindedly. "Okay well I'll drive you back but I swear to god if even one of you pisses me off..." I trailed off and seeing the looks all around, I knew we weren't going to have a problem. I grinned and clapped my hands together. "Great lets get moving then." 

As I got back into my seat, a curly long haired boy sat in the passenger seat. I furrowed my eyebrows as he gave me a warm smile. 

"I'm Harry." He introduced himself. I rolled my eyes and shifted gears. 

"I don't care." I retorted. My tone didn't seem to give him a hint as he began to talk animatedly. I tuned him out until I felt a nudge. 

"What?" I snapped, keeping my eyes on the road. 

"Oh it's just you turn left up ahead." Harry murmured in a hushed voice. I took the turn and focused on the muted chatter in the back seat.

"How do we know we can trust this guy?" 

"Zayn if he wanted to kill us, he would have already. He's had like 10 opportunities to do it." 

"Yeah I agree with Niall. He saved me from being bit. If he wanted us dead he wouldn't have helped us." 

"Whatever, I still don't trust him." 

I rolled my eyes and clenched my hands on the steering wheel. 

We had been driving for what felt like hours. The only sound being Harry quietly directing me along the way. Eventually I could see smoke billowing nearby and I realized this must be their camp. The excited murmurs behind me confirmed my thoughts. The ground became more flat as we emerged into a clearing and I saw an even bigger group of people. I shut off the car and glanced at Harry. The boy looked relieved as he threw the door open and raced away. Bitch didn't even close the door. The looks of confusion I was given from the group made me uncomfortable and I really wanted to get the hell away from here. My door opened and I was met with the same buzz cut girl from before. 

"Come on, the least we can do is feed you." She spoke in a matter of fact tone and I couldn't help but feel nervous. There was only one of me and multiple of them. What if they- my thoughts were interrupted as the girl pulled me from my seat and damn I should've put my seatbelt on. 

"I'm Ashley." She introduced herself. I looked at the ground, deciding not to reply. 

"Ashley! Oh my god I was so worried!" 

I looked up to see a taller dark haired guy run towards the girl beside me. I couldn't help but notice the colourful tattoo sleeve he had. It was almost mesmerizing. The couple embraced into a tight hug and I felt like I was intruding on some kind of personal moment. Finally Ashley pulled away and glanced at me with a smile. 

"This is Josh. Josh this is..." she trailed off, obviously waiting for me to fill in the blank. However I ignored her as well as the hand Josh extended in my direction. 

"Right." Josh muttered and retracted his hand, instead putting it in the pocket of his dirty skinny jeans. He turned his attention back to Ashley. "Care to explain what happened?" She twiddled her thumbs and shrugged. 

"I'll wait for everyone so I don't have to keep repeating it." She answered. "Anyways come on looks like everyone's gathering." She looked off into the short distance where the others were all staring at us. I felt extremely compelled to turn around and just drive away but my feet remained frozen. I felt a hand lace with mine and I immediately shook it away, glaring at Ashley. She put her hands up in surrender and chuckled as if the situation was funny. Awkwardly I forced my feet to move in the direction of the people. 

"So...care to explain." A guy with bright red hair spoke to no one in particular. Everyone decided now would suddenly be a good time to be quiet. The strangers eyes landed on me and I sucked in a breath at the intensity his green eyes held. However I couldn't show him that his staring bothered me. I glared back at him and scoffed. 

"Why the fuck are you looking at me?" I hissed. Instead of answering, the guy simply lifted an eyebrow as if to say "are you serious?" I sighed. 

"I was just going about my business and they," I paused to glare at the small group of people that I had rescued. "Were causing a racket so I simply went to see what happened. Dumb asses had themselves fucked and I helped them and drove them home." 

"Is this true?" Green eyes questioned, letting his gaze sweep over everyone.  
The group nodded their heads in return and the walking firetruck sighed before looking back at me.

"Thank you. If you'd like to stay..." He trailed off knowing that I understood what he was offering. 

"Thanks but no thanks. I've been doing just great on my own so far." I muttered. 

"At least stay the night and think it over. If you still don't want to stay, we'll give you some supplies and gas, you must be running low." He persuaded. I had to admit he was right and opened my mouth to reply to him. Just then a pair of my eyes caught mine and the words died in my throat because fuck, they looked just like Jasmine's and god my heart clenched in my chest just thinking about it. The sound of someone clearing their throat brought me back and I felt a little rattled. 

"Uh yeah sure. That would be great thanks." I replied, not once breaking eye contact with those eyes. 

"Wonderful. Calum show him around. My name's Michael if you need anything." 

I snapped out of my trance just long enough to register green eyes no, Michael's words. Just like that everyone began to go back to whatever it was they had been doing before we arrived. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I whipped around, caught off guard. It was the same chocolate eyed boy with the tattoos. 

"Hey I'm Calum. I guess I'm gonna show you around but first..." He trailed off awkwardly to point at the gun and knife I had lodged into the waistband of my jeans. I frowned at him as I slowly pulled them out. "It's nothing personal dude, it's just we don't really know you and uh yeah." I rolled my eyes but handed the kid my weapons anyway. Even though I had no compulsion to kill the strangers, they wouldn't know that. 

"Great so there's not much around. I mean there's a stream about 10 minutes away and we have trailers that we sleep in but other then that..." I nodded. It seemed like a good enough setup. "You can room with me Mike and Lucas." He declared and smiled. "I didn't catch your name." I scowled.

"That's because I never gave you one." He laughed at my statement. 

"Okay fair enough. Now I'll introduce you to some people." 

I had learned that the people I had driven home excluding Calum and Harry were Zayn, Niall, Tyler and Ashley. They seemed nice enough but they asked to many questions. The sun had begun to set when Calum yawned and announced we were going back to the camper while dinner was being made. It was actually interesting how everyone interacted with one another. They all had different tasks to do everyday and switched off every week. It was pretty organized for these days. I hadn't seen those blue eyes since the mini meeting early and half of me was glad but, the other half was disappointed. I ignored the feeling and followed the tattooed boy to a run down RV. 

"Here we are. You get settled while I give these," he motioned to my gun and knife. "To Mike." I nodded to show my understanding and shifted my backpack strap so it was a little more comfortable. I unlatched the door and stepped inside. It kind of smelled like those lemon car scents people hang in their cars. 

"Cal?" a voice sounded from towards the back and I realized this must be the Lucas that Calum had mentioned earlier. Instead of answering I stepped around the corner and gasped. The same blue eyes stared back at me. But instead of the caramel skin I had kissed all over, it was a pale milky colour and instead of the curly brown hair I ran my fingers through, it was short and blonde, laying flat. And instead of my girlfriend, this was a boy I had never met before. He frowned.

"What? Is there something wrong." He asked in concern and I was a blubbering mess.

"No it's just that. I mean you. God what the fuck. What I mean is." I slapped a hand over my forehead. "Fuck, no I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare it's just that you...remind me of someone." I decided that was an acceptable enough answer. The boy laughed. "Oh I'm sorry. I'm not them." He tried awkwardly. I looked away, sorrow burying itself in my chest.

"Yeah me to. Anyway you must be Lucas."

The blonde laughed once more. "Actually it's just Luke but Lucas works to I guess." I felt my face heating up at my mistake. 

"And you're the mysterious stranger nobody knows anything about." He guessed. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. 

"That's because it's nobody's business." I hissed. 

"Woah, I wasn't judging! Just observing. I get it." He backtracked and I glanced up at him. "Can you at least tell me your name so I can stop calling you the hot mysterious stranger?" He asked and my face flushed once more. It's not like I was going to be sticking around for much longer so I reluctantly answered his question. 

"Ashton. My name's Ashton." 

He looked away from me. "Ashton. Hm okay I'm Luke." I rolled my eyes. 

"I know, you already told me." I reminded him. Luke smiled and as much as I tried to bite my own back, I ended up joining him. 

"You have a pretty smile, you should show it off more often." He declared and I looked away. I'm pretty sure I was as red as a tomato and Jesus, what had gotten into me? 

"Luke?" A voice called from outside the trailer. The blonde opened the window closest to him. 

"Yeah?" 

"Dinners ready. Is that guy in there with you?" 

Luke turned and smiled at me before replying. "Yeah. Yeah he's in here. I'll bring him out." With that, he stood up and stretched his arms upward. And no I didn't stare. Nope not at all. 

"Alright! Let's eat!" He rubbed his hands together enthusiastically for empathize. As he walked past me I noticed something that inevitably made me annoyed. He was taller then me. I was used to always being the tallest kid at school and it didn't feel good to know I had been dethroned. With a scowl I followed the dumb kid out of the camper and towards the mass of people who were gathered around a fire. I saw Michael pat the spot next to him, a clear indication that Luke should sit next to him. However, the blue eyed boy acted as though he hadn't seen the gesture and instead grabbed my hand, pulling me to the opposite side of the jagged circle. When I looked back in Michael's direction, he sent me a poorly disguised grimace. Hm so blondie and the firetruck have some tension. Not that that was any of my business. I felt a nudge and I tore my eyes away from Michael to look up at Luke. God I hated how I had to look up at him. He was holding a paper plate with some kind of canned food spread on it. I took it into my hands along with the plastic fork he provided me. 

"Thanks." I murmured. I hadn't realized how hungry I truly was until the food was right in front of me. In all honesty, I couldn't remember the last time I ate.

"So...are you staying or what's your plan?" Michael asked me, knuckles white as he gripped his fork. I shrugged. 

"Does anyone really have a plan?" I inquired. The silence that followed answered my question. "I don't have a plan. However I know I'm not staying." I continued. I failed to notice how crestfallen the blonde became after the words fell from my mouth. Michael however looked relieved. 

"Okay well to repay you for what you've done for us, I'll take some people into town and get supplies for your journey. Liam, Louis and Josh you'll accompany me." His green gaze returned to me. "And I'm assuming you'll be joining in?" 

"Of course." I replied, stuffing another bite into my mouth. 

"I want to go!" Luke sounded and Michael looked taken aback. "Mike I haven't gotten out of here in a week. I'm coming with you." 

Michael gave the boy a look, stating that this conversation was far from over. 

The rest of dinner went over awkward silence, aside from the occasional small talk. 

"Where do I put this?" I asked Luke, gesturing at my plate. 

"Oh I'll take it for you." He offered with an easy smile. 

"I need to talk to you." Michaels voice sounded. I assumed he was talking about tomorrow's plans and turned to face him. However, his eyes were on the blue-eyed boy. 

"I'm busy at the moment." The blonde pointedly turned his back on Michael and instead looked at me. "Meet me back at the camper?" He asked, blue eyes sparkling with what seemed to be determination. Instead of answering, I nodded and quickly walked towards the trailer. The air back there had been so thick with tension and I was glad I could breathe again. I had no idea what was going on between the blonde and red-head however, I didn't like it. I shook the thought away and reminded myself that I'd be gone tomorrow. With that in mind, I slipped into the RV and crawled up onto the upper bunk. I closed my eyes, hoping to get some rest. My mind had other ideas. Her face was forever etched in my mind. Every single night I had the same nightmare. 

"Seriously Mike? Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" 

I heard Luke's voice from outside the trailer. I slowly peeked outside the blinds to see the blond glaring at the leader with annoyance. I didn't want to intrude so I laid back down and closed my eyes. 

"I'm just trying to look out for you." Michael tried to defend himself.

"I can look out for myself! Stop doing that!" 

"Stop doing what?" The red-head sounded confused.

"Looking at me like that! You and I are over! And I'm getting so tired of you giving me special treatment. I can take care of myself so stop treating me like some incompetent toddler!" With that I heard a loud slam and a sigh followed after. I decided it would be best if I just kept my mouth shut.

"Hey Ash." Luke smiled at me weakly before laying down in his bunk. Wow so we were on nickname basis already. I didn't respond, instead turning over to my side and staring at the wall. 

"Ashton..." 

"What?" 

"Can you sleep with me." 

"Excuse me?" I exclaimed. My cheeks were flaming just as I'm positive his were to. 

"No no not like that!" He clarified, clearly flustered. "It's just that...it's cold, I'm in a bad mood and I just want to cuddle. 

I sighed and thought it over. I guess it wouldn't matter seeing as I left in the morning. 

"Alright." 

I scooted down and adjusted myself beside the boy. He was curled up, eyes squeezed closed and jaw tense. I was a little angry towards Michael seeing as he was the one who started this argument. 

"Thank you." He whispered, turning off the light. 

"Mhm." I responded and tugged the blanket a little higher. 

"Goodnight Luke." Gentle snores met my words and I couldn't help but smile. There was something special about the boy. To bad I was leaving to soon for me to make him realize that.


	4. Day 74

I'm sick, and I'm tired too  
I can admit, I am not fireproof  
I feel it burning me  
I feel it burning you  
I hope I don't murder me  
I hope I don't burden you  
If I do, If I do

The Beach// The Neighborhood 

The next morning started out great. I found myself gazing outside at the sunrise. It was probably sometime around 6 and I was feeling great. Or as great as you can be in these days. Something stirred beside me and I swivelled my head to stare fondly at the blonde beside me. Luke was curled in on himself, arms hugging around his shoulders and face buried in my shoulder. He sleepily opened his eyes and blinked at me. 

"Morning." He rasped and I mentally cooed. 

"Ready for the run?" A gruff voice interrupted us. I looked up to see Michael staring at us with accusing eyes. Luke nodded while I chose to keep my silence. The tall boy lumbered off and I sat up, stretching my arms and back. 

"I guess we should get going." I broke the quiet. 

"Are you sure you have to leave?"  
The blue eyed boy whispered, looking down as he traced patterns into the mattress. I looked away awkwardly and scratched the back of my neck.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm sure." He seemed to deflate, knowing there was no way I was going to change my mind. I quickly grabbed a dirty white shirt from my backpack and slipped it over my head. The jeans I was already wearing would have to do. When I looked over at Luke, he was already dressed in a black shirt with black jeans. They were freshly cleaned so I assumed he had taken them down to the stream that was close by. 

"Leave your clothes here and someone can wash them while we're gone." Luke murmured. I nodded and stood up, leaving the camper and the thick tension inside. I still felt awkward from listening in on Luke and Michael's conversation last night, but I couldn't get it out of my head. 

"I'll take those." 

I glanced up to see Calum smiling at me with his hand outstretched. I nodded and passed him the small bundle of clothes I carried with me. 

"Thanks." 

The boys face scrunched up in surprise. "He's actually nice? Who are you and what did you do with Ashton?" He mocked and I frowned. 

"How do you know my name?" I questioned suspiciously. He shrugged. 

"Luke brought it up. Something along the lines of, Oh my god, have you seen Ashton's eyes?! They're so pretty!" He accompanied his impression by putting a hand to his forehead and fluttering his eyelashes dramatically. I couldn't help but crack a smile at his dramatic statement. 

"I don't sound like that!" A whine sounded from behind me. Luke was glaring at Calum, a light blush painted across his cheeks. The dark skinned boy shrugged and rolled his eyes. 

"Sounds the same to me." 

Luke pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. 

"Are we ready to go?" I turned to see Michael emerge from behind Luke. Luke and I nodded in confirmation. 

"Great, let's get the others and hit the road. See you later Cal." He dismissed the boy, not bothering to look at the boy. I didn't miss the hurt that flashed in his brown eyes. I followed Michael towards the clearing where my van was parked. Josh, Liam and Louis were already waiting with expectant looks. 

"Alright because there's more people then planned," the redhead paused to glare at me. "We'll take 2 cars. Liam, Louis and Luke, you're going to take the car and Josh and Ashton, you're with me. We're taking the truck. Everyone nodded and started walking towards the temporary parking lot. There were 5 different types of cars parked and I wondered which truck we'd be taking. Luke sent me a longing look as he stepped into the backseat of an old Toyota car. I shrugged in response and trailed after Michael and Josh to a jacked up black truck. Josh slipped into the back so I assumed I had shotgun. Before I even had my door closed, Michael was roaring down the road. Well shit this was going to be a long trip.

We had been driving for a little under half hour when I glanced back and saw Josh fast asleep. I sighed and decided to make small talk with the green eyed boy. 

"So...where exactly are we headed?" I asked. Not a personal question but one that involved more then a yes or no. Michael's grip on the steering wheel tightened until his knuckles were white. 

"Shut the fuck up." He snarled and I couldn't help but feel offended. That and nobody got away with talking to me like that. 

"Excuse me? I'm sorry that you're upset that Luke dumped your ass but stop taking it out on me. Frankly I can't blame him. You're a fucking mess. God I may be bisexual but I have zero interest in Luke. Jesus you need to chill out like I'm leaving in a couple hours it's not like I'm gonna sweep in and steal your man. Whatever issues you have with him needs to stay between you and him. Fix them and stop acting like a fucking asshole towards me. I haven't done shit. I seethed. Honestly I could care less about his feelings or even his reaction at this point. However, Michael didn't say a word. Just clenched his jaw and flipped me off as we continued down the road. I rolled my eyes and huffed. Whatever I wouldn't have to deal with him much longer. Abruptly, Michael turned into a small shopping area causing Josh to groan from the backseat. 

"Are we there yet?" He asked, stifling a yawn. 

"Yeah." Michael replied shortly and removed the keys from the car, before stepping out without sparing me a second glance. 

"What crawled up his ass and died?" Josh muttered and followed after the green eyed boy. I quickly copied his actions and met up with the small group. Luke smiled at me and I looked away. I didn't need this trip to be a disaster just because Michael had jealousy issues. 

"Okay so just grab anything that seems useful and we'll leave." Michael instructed. Seemed simple enough. I took off to a small convince store to scavenge amongst the rubble. 

"Are you mad at me?" I nearly screamed in surprise and whipped around to see Luke. His eyes were lowered and his feet turned inwards as he awkwardly shuffled from side to side. 

"God, don't sneak up on me like that!" I muttered and turned my focus back to getting supplies. 

"Sorry." He mumbled and joined me in my search. 

"No I'm not mad at you." I answered his question as I picked up a can of beans. 

"It sure seams like it." He whispered and I almost felt bad. 

"Look kid, I'm leaving in a couple hours and we'll never see each other again. Why would I take time to get more attached to you then necessary? I mean it's only gonna make it harder when I go." I replied picking up several more cans and throwing them in my bag. The blonde sighed but kept his mouth shut. It was probably for the best. I grabbed a few other useful items and shoved them into the backpack, glancing up in time to see Luke opening a door that must've lead to the back. As soon as he turned the knob, the door was flung open and he shrieked in surprise. My eyes widened seeing a mass of corpses streaming out from behind the door. 

"Luke!" I screamed, dropping the bag and racing to his side. I grabbed his hand and put my hand at my waist, reaching for the revolver. Shit. Calum still had it back at camp. 

"Run!" I ordered and took off back towards the cars. It seemed we had caused quite the commotion, as the rest of the group was staring at us with wide eyes. 

"We need to go!" Luke shrieked to the others but it appeared that they were frozen. After shaking his head, Michael pulled out a gun from his back pocket. 

"Give me one!" I demanded, looking at Michael as I extended my hand. He ignored me and proceeded to gun down the hoard of flesh-eaters that seemed endless. In other words we were heavily outnumbered. 

"Ashton!" I turned to see Josh throwing me a pistol. I nodded gratefully and started to fire at the dead. It seemed as though for every one we shot down, two more would replace it. It wasn't long before the group was separated. 

"Try to stay together!" I hollered over the desperate groans. I was pretty sure nobody heard me but it was worth a try. I glanced to my left to see Josh and Michael side by side. They looked like they were fine. I shot down another biter and looked to my right. Luke and Louis were struggling a little and beside them Liam was having difficulty. I rushed to the laters side, killing anything in my path. Just as I reached him, a scream distracted me. My eyes immediately locked on Luke. He had gotten separated from Louis and was being backed against the brick wall of the connivence store. I took off towards him, adrenaline pumping through my veins. He had decreased the number of corpses around him but the remaining three were dangerously close. Without hesitation, I aimed and took down the closest one. The other two kept advancing onto the blonde. I aimed once more.   
Click.  
Well shit. I was out of ammo. Thinking fast, I curled my hand into a fist and pounded it into the skull of one of the corpses. A mixture of blood and brain matter spattered all over the blonde boy and he made a choking sound, before shooting the remaining flesh-eater. I turned to the blonde with concerned eyes. 

"Are you alright? You didn't get bit did you?" I asked a little to frantically. He shook his head no and I breathed a sigh of relief. Looking around I noticed there was only a couple stragglers from the bunch. We all made it. I thought. Except I spoke to soon as a scream of agony broke through the air. I whipped my head to see Liam desperately trying to free his ankle from the corpse on the ground. Looks like that one hadn't been dead when it hit the ground. A gunshot fired and the monster went limp. Liam collapsed on the ground and everyone rushed to his side. 

"Oh my god." He panted, staring at his mangled ankle in horror. "I'm going to die!" Now he was frantic. 

"Someone help me get him in the car." I ordered. Josh nodded and grabbed his friends shoulders as I grabbed his legs, careful to avoid the infected area. 

"Are you insane? He's been bit! We can't take him home! He'll kill everyone!" Michael observed, throwing his hands in the air for empathize. 

"There might be a way we can save him but we need to hurry!" I told him urgently. Michael rolled his eyes and muttered something about us being idiots. With Josh's help, I loaded the boy into the back of Michaels truck, before climbing in the back with him. 

"Drive!" I ordered the red head, not bothering to check on the others. Liam groaned in pain as I grabbed a knife that was laying on the floor. 

"Is this the biggest knife you have?" I asked nobody in particular. It was more of a pocket knife, but better then a steak knife. 

"Yeah, but we have more back at camp." Josh offered.

"He won't last that long, this is going to have to do." I muttered. Without any painkillers, I knew this would be agony for Liam.

"This is going to hurt, but if you want to live, it's the only way." I told him. 

"Just do it." Liam muttered past grit teeth.

I looked into his eyes and nodded. The boy looked scared out of his mind but there was determination behind that fear and this after all, was the only way. 

"Okay. 1... 2..." I hacked into part of his leg before I could get to 3. Liam screamed out in pain, but this was a knife and the job wasn't near done. I quickly went back to the hacking and Liam kept screaming out. 

"Stop you're killing him!" Michael shouted from the drivers seat. 

"No, I'm saving his life!" I snapped as Liam's ankle finally separated from his leg. Liam was silent and for a moment I believed that maybe Michael was right and I had killed him. After seeing his chest faintly rise and fall, I figured he had just passed out from the pain. I rolled down the window and chucked the severed body part out of it. Nobody would be needing that anymore. Noticing the thick amount of blood that was spilling on the seat, I picked up a jacket on the floor and attempted to stop his bleeding. I hoped Michael's maniac driving would get us to camp quick or else Liam was going to bleed out. The remainder of the trip was silent and that was perfectly fine by me. 

After about an hour of driving the silence was broken. "What the fuck is that?" Michael hissed. I looked around until I saw what he was talking about. There was a huge cloud of smoke in the trees, exactly where the camp was. Suddenly the car was going faster as Michael tried to hurry home. He turned a corner and we were met with the familiar clearing. However flames had engulfed the camp as people tried to figure out what to do. Michael rolled down his window. 

"Everyone grab everything you can and get in the trailers! Once you're in follow me!" He hollered. 

"Michael we need something to stop the bleeding." I reminded him, still holding the jacket firmly to the wound. 

"Can't you see I'm a little busy?!" He hissed as he raced towards Niall who was struggling to carry some supplies. 

I grabbed Josh's shoulder. "Help me get him to the trailer." He nodded, eyes wide as he got out of the truck to my side. I looked around for someone else who wasn't busy and spotted Luke who was still sitting the car clearly horrified. 

"Hey Luke!" I called. He looked up and hurried over. "You have to help me and Josh move him to one of the trailers." He nodded as I picked Liam up bridal style. "Okay just make sure his leg stays elevated and keep applying pressure." I instructed. Once he did both things with the help of Josh, I started walking briskly to the closest trailer. The flames were getting closer and I knew we wouldn't have much time left. I rapidly knocked on the door and Ashley was the one who opened it. Her eyes widened at the sight of Liam. 

"We have to go." I told her. She nodded rapidly and got out of the way. "C'mon!" I urged the others as I ducked into the trailer. They quickly followed as Ashely started the ignition. I looked behind me to see the flames were everywhere, just like the walking corpses. 

"We need to go." I repeated. Luke and Josh had already taken Liam to the bed in the back and were currently searching for some antibiotics. I caught eye contact with Michael who was assisting Tyler to his truck. 

"Go! We'll be right behind you!" He assured us before getting into the truck. With that we drove away from the ruined camp.


End file.
